Learn about your town – how do town administrators and businesses get the community involved with events, areas of concern, and improving their town? Work with your town’s recreation coordinator, Town Hall administrator and a local cable station to see how these roles weave together to create community.
Overview
- Essential Question: What business techniques can be used to promote and engage interest in the community?
- Areas of study: Business; Marketing; Communications
- Type and amount of credit earned: ½ elective credit
- Community partner: Town Hall recreation coordinator (lead), Town Hall administrator, and the town cables studio coordinator
Competencies
- Marketing Process: Event Planning/ Advertising. Create and utilize a variety of resources to effectively plan and execute events in areas of interest/concern, to inform and educate the community
- Public Relations Research. Research topics of concern and suggested improvements within the community. Obtain knowledge regarding processes involved with issues and topics within the community.
- Public Service: Announcements/Media Communications. Construct and submit a proficient ad in the community newspaper as well as professional business letters. Effectively communicate with business professionals in the community. Organize, prepare and structure interviews for the local cable television station.
See the detailed ELO description for the full text of these competencies.
Student activities
- Under the direction of the Town Recreation Coordinator, learn out about upcoming town events.
- Research and inform local businesses of community events, develop business interest lists.
- Create, distribute and submit flyers for upcoming town events e.g., Harvest Festival/Strawberry Festival.
- Develop surveys for programs in the community to gauge their effectiveness, e.g., the Senior Citizen Transportation Program.
- Distribute and collect surveys, analyze data, develop spreadsheet and report findings to Community Partner.
- Public Service Announcements
- Research the event or initiative prior to the interview
- Inquire about the guest being interviewed and their role(s)
- Prepare for interviews; write dialogues and or practice questions to ask
- Practice on-camera techniques to interviewing with Community Partner (Cable TV Studio Director)
- Speak in front of a camera on the local Cable TV Studio, i.e. weekly Town Talk show for the community
- Write and submit Public Service Announcements for the local newspaper regarding upcoming events
Assessment
Student will create a portfolio demonstrating their ELO involvement and the processes involved. The portfolio includes journal entries, marketing/advertising project examples, public relations/research and spreadsheets, event planning, public service announcements, newspaper articles and a midterm evaluation completed by the lead Community Partner. The student will also show an example of an interview that they conducted regarding the town’s beautification (or other) project. For this student, the interview was aired on the local TV station.
More information
The ELO is tailored, town specific. Each community has its own specific needs, events and programs to highlight. A suggestion for students is to pursue an internship within their own town, become knowledgeable about the town, the businesses, business professionals, events and residents. It’s amazing what students learn about their town through this ELO.
This ELO was submitted by Holly Londo, School to Careers Transition Coordinator at Windham High School
